The South African mining sector has undergone “transformative change” over the past two decades, moving from a history of legislated gender inequality that barred women from mining jobs, to becoming an industry striving for inclusion and equality, according to mining industry employers’ organisation Minerals Council South Africa's Women in Mining (WiM) Leadership Forum.

Research conducted by the Minerals Council in 2020 found that women made up only 12% of the mining industry. This underrepresentation of women is not unique to South Africa; other countries with significant mining activities, such as Australia and Canada, also have relatively low levels of female participation at 17% and 16%, respectively.

To address this disparity, the Minerals Council launched the WiM initiative in August 2020.

The forum and its working groups have, as part of the diversity charge, implemented a WiM strategy through robust awareness campaigns, multimedia engagements and strategic partnerships.

The WiM strategy identifies key priorities for implementation at an industry level, including measures such as zero tolerance for gender-based violence (GBV), the development and promotion of gender diversity and inclusion policies, training towards unconscious bias identification and associated measures, and the development and promotion of inclusive physical environments for women.

Further, the WiM strategy set ambitious targets, including reaching 30% female representation across the industry by 2025 and 40% by 2035.

Similarly, the targets for women in management positions are 40% by 2025 and 50% by 2035.

The WiM initiative aims to create a transformed, diverse and equitable mining sector that reflects South Africa’s demographics.

Further efforts are also underway to attract women to mining careers, creating a safe, inclusive work environment.

Central to this progress is the September launch of Minerals Council South Africa's WiM website, which Minerals Council president and WiM Leadership Forum chairperson Nolitha Fakude highlights, will “illuminate the industry's commitment to inclusivity”.

In addition to this, the Minerals Council also introduced its WiM newsletter in August, which aims to showcase success stories, initiatives and resources, serving as a hub for cocreation and collaboration.

She says the website and newsletter will both feature stories about the work the Minerals Council

is doing to support and encourage women through the WiM Leadership Forum, as well as create a platform that “amplifies” the voices of women in the mining sector and facilitates sharing of best practices among Minerals Council member companies.

Features of the newsletter will include highlighting the inspiring success stories of women who have overcome barriers and have made a positive contribution to the industry and their respective companies. The newsletter will also include interviews with influential women in leadership roles and those doing remarkable work in the sector.

“We also share industry insights and trends, provide information on upcoming events, workshops and conferences, and highlight resources and opportunities to support and empower women in mining and continue #MakingMiningMatter,” Fakude points out.

The website and newsletter are two measures that aim to address legislated gender inequality that historically prevented women from working in mines as such jobs were ringfenced for men.

“Nonetheless, there is more to do to reach gender equity, equality, safety and retention of women in the industry,” the first WiM newsletter reads.

The WiM initiative aims to create a transformed, diverse and equitable mining sector that reflects South Africa’s demographics.

The Minerals Council notes that this year the number of women in the mining workforce increased to 72 500, representing 15% of the total workforce.

While diversity progress has been made, WiM notes that the mining sector remains challenging for women owing to cultural biases, physical and sexual harassment, and a lack of gender-sensitive facilities.

Despite, efforts being made through the Minerals Council’s WiM Leadership Forum and working groups to implement the WiM strategy over the past three years, Fakude notes there is a need for refocused efforts to achieve the targets the Minerals Council and WiM Leadership Forum have set.

In response, the WiM working groups have recalibrated their efforts to make the mining sector an “industry of choice for women”.

Key actions over the next three years include crafting and sharing a GBV framework, revising diversity, equity and inclusion policies, establishing and running WiM structures at company level, increasing engagement on the Minerals Council’s WiM Gender Diversity and Inclusion Dashboard, using education materials on unconscious bias, and collaborating with external stakeholders to address socioeconomic challenges.

The revised strategy enables continuous cocreation by women and men in the industry to create a sustainable mining sector that is diverse and equitable and addresses socio-economic challenges in host communities, according to WiM.

“Through these efforts, the mining industry aims to become more inclusive, perform better economically and attract the best talent in the field,” Fakude concludes.